Princeton, Illinois
}} Princeton is a city in and the county seat of Bureau County, Illinois, United States. The population was 7,660 at the 2010 census. Princeton is part of the Ottawa–Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Princeton was settled in the 1830s by families from New England and the Mid-Atlantic states.History of Princeton During the time of slavery, it was a stop on the Underground Railroad at the home of Owen Lovejoy. The name of Princeton was supposedly determined by drawing from a hat: Princeton's former nickname was "The City of Elms" because of the huge number of elm trees the city had during the middle of the 20th century. However, an epidemic struck the elm trees of Princeton and killed off almost every single elm. The current slogan, "Where Tradition Meets Progress", was adopted in the mid 1960s by a contest among the city's elementary school students. The student who submitted the winning slogan was Maybeth Monroe. (photograph available) Geography Princeton is located at (41.378481, -89.466924). According to the 2010 census, the city has a total area of , all land. Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 7,501 people, 3,263 households, and 1,987 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,114.6 people per square mile (430.3/km²). There were 3,513 housing units at an average density of 522.0 per square mile (201.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.81% White, 0.9939% African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.63% Asian, 0.43% from other races, and 0.64% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.24% of the population. There were 3,263 households out of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.6% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.1% were non-families. 35.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.85. In the city the population was spread out with 22.3% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 25.9% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 21.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 85.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $39,622, and the median income for a family was $50,018. Males had a median income of $38,908 versus $20,784 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,632. About 5.6% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.8% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over. Economy Princeton's major employers include Ace Hardware Retail Support Center, LCN Closers, (a division of Ingersoll Rand), MTM Recognition, formerly Josten's, makers of several world championship rings including the 2005 Chicago White Sox, all of the Chicago Bulls Championships, and the 1985 Chicago Bears. Champion Pneumatic (Gardner Denver) manufactures top notch air compressors, Pioneer Hi-Bred International (DuPont Co) and Perry Memorial Hospital. Princeton's downtown is home to shops and restaurants. Major event Each year the city of Princeton holds its annual Homestead Festival the second weekend in September. There are usually over one-hundred entries in the parade. The homestead festival hosts a play that is held throughout the weekend, a beer garden with local bands, children's events, craft show, and tasting booths.http://www.homesteadfestival.com/history.html Transportation Princeton is located on the south side of Interstate 80 some southwest of Chicago. U.S. Route 6, U.S. Route 34, and Illinois Route 26 all run through Princeton. Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Princeton, operating the California Zephyr, the Illinois Zephyr, the Carl Sandburg and the Southwest Chief each daily in both directions between Chicago and points west from Princeton (Amtrak station). Education Princeton is home to Princeton High School, the oldest township high school in the state, founded in 1867. Its mascot is the Tiger. The high school enrollment fluctuates between 600 and 800 students. The school recently finished adding on an addition to meet the students' needs. The new addition houses a larger library as well as several new classrooms. The school is home to the Frank and Marion Rathje track which hosts high school football, track and field teams from around the region. Princeton's most famous tradition is the Homestead Festival, which began in 1971, as a celebration of the restoration of the Owen Lovejoy Homestead, and now comprises a weekend of food, celebration, and the famous Homestead Parade, which lasts for over an hour with local floats and performances by outside groups, including the South Shore Drill Team and the Jesse White Tumbling Team. Library Princeton's library history dates back to March 1886 when a location for the library was decided upon and secured. The first library was located at the building at what now is 529 South Main Street. In 1890 the Matson Public Library, located on South Main, was first opened for use by the public. It remained in use for 22 years. In 1912 the construction of larger Matson Public Library building was begun. It was located at 15 Park Avenue East. On March 21, 2006, a referendum was passed for the renovation of 698 East Peru Street, formerly known as Bogo's, to become Princeton Public Library. Princeton Public Library opened on August 1, 2007, replacing an older facility, the Matson Public Library, and has a book collection of 45,000 items, with about of usable space. The library is located on East Peru Street (U.S. Route 6). In March 2009, the Princeton Public Library was one of only three libraries in the state of Illinois to host Between Fences, an exhibit sponsored by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibits Service (SITES) and the Illinois Humanities Council. Additional exhibits include Bookstock: Celebrating 40 Years of Woodstock, and Cherry Mine Disaster Revisited, a showcase commemorating the lives lost during the Cherry Mine Disaster of 1909. Notable people * William Bascom, folklorist, anthropologist * Henry C. Doolittle, state assemblyman from Wisconsin * Virgil Fox, organist * Gary Green, guitarist for the band Gentle Giant * Jerry Hadley, opera singer and recitalist * Kathryn Hays, actress on the daytime soap opera As The World Turns * Frank Jones, shortstop and outfielder for the Detroit Wolverines * Paul Kell, NFL player with the Green Bay Packers * Keith Knudsen, drummer with the Doobie Brothers * Owen Lovejoy, congressman and key supporter of Abraham Lincoln * Asa Shinn Mercer, founder of the University of Washington * Ben Parr, former Editor-at-Large of Mashable and founder of #DominateFund * Robert Petkoff, noted Broadway and Television actor, graduated from Princeton High School * Joseph "Joe" Ruklick, basketball player with the Philadelphia Warriors * Douglas Spencer, actor * Josh Taylor, actor in Days of Our Lives soap opera and television features * Richard Widmark, Oscar-nominated actor of 61 movies, he was senior class President when he graduated from Princeton High School The Bryant family Among the earliest settlers in Princeton were the Bryants from Massachusetts, the mother, sister, and brothers of poet William Cullen Bryant (1794–1878).Inventory of the Bryant Family, Princeton, Illinois, Collection in the Northern Illinois Regional History Center The poet is known to have spent many weeks in Princeton visiting his sister and brothers. The youngest of his brothers, John Howard Bryant (1807–1902), also a poet of note, lived on the southern edge of the young city. To this day there stands a small timber known as Bryant Woods, where Abraham Lincoln gave a noteworthy speech in his young political life. The High School football field is named Bryant Field in honor of this famous family. The Bryant Homestead has been occupied by the Nelson family for over 50 years. References External links *City of Princeton, Illinois - official website *Princeton Tourism Bureau - official website *Princeton Chamber of Commerce - official website Category:Cities in Bureau County, Illinois Category:Cities in Illinois Category:Settlements on the Underground Railroad Category:County seats in Illinois Category:Princeton, Illinois Category:Ottawa–Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area. Category:Settlements established in the 1830s